Question

Why Nepalese women are backward for all the sector?

Answer 1

The socio-economic status of women in Nepal is very poor. The women are being discriminated in every aspect of the society.  These and so many other factors have contributed to turn Nepal a lower human development state.

3.1 Socio-Economic Status

 Nepal is a country of great geographic, cultural, ethnic, religious diversity. Across the diversity, the majority of communities in Nepal are patriarchal. A women’s life is strongly influenced by her father, husband and son. Such patriarchal practices are further reinforced by the legal system. Marriage has a great importance in women’ life. The event of marriage determines the way of her life. The early marriage generally depreciates the women’s life. A woman’s power to accept or reject marriage partner is evidently an index of the degree of freedom she exercises in the management of her own life, and thus also of her status. The status of women is determined by the patriarchal social system, values, and women’s right preserved and protected by the state, and state policy for the development of women.

Women’s relative status, however, varied from one ethnic group to another. The economic contribution of women is substantial, but largely unnoticed because their traditional role was taken as for granted.

Empirical data have proved that situation of Nepalese women is too severe to compare with men. Woman’s situation is very poor in health, education, participation, income generation, self-confidence, decision-making, access to policymaking, and human rights. The insurgency for more than 10 years between the State and the rebel has further widened this gap.

The health status of Nepal’s people is one of the lowest in the South Asian region and this is particularly true for females.  Nepal is one of the countries of the world where life expectancy for women is lower than that of men. One fifth of women get married in the early age of 15-19. As a result of their premature pregnancy the deaths of women have been occurring in a very high. High birth rates, low life expectancy, high infant and maternal mortality rates and high death rate indicate the poor health status of women.

National statistics shows that women’s literacy rate is 30 percent while 66percent to male and the national literacy rate is projected as 40 percent. The enrollment of women in higher education is only 24.95 percent. Women’ involvement in technical and vocational education is also lower than men.  This is due to the social norms and culture that we follow also. As in rural areas girls are considered as “paraya dhan”(others property) and they don’t get the opportunity to get education.

A large part of women’s work is not considered as economic activity. As a result only 45.2 per cent of women as compared to 68.2 per cent of men are classified as economically active. Women’s average work burden has increased slightly over the past 12 years from 10.8 hours per day in 1981 to 10.9 hours per day in 1995. Men’s average work burden presently is 7.8 hours a day, 3.1 hours less than that of women. Women’s participation in the informal sector has increased significantly in both urban and rural areas – for example vending, petty trade liquor making and vegetable selling are some of the more common employment ventures of women. In rural areas, the employment outside the household generally was limited to planting, weeding, and harvesting. In urban areas, they were employed in domestic and traditional jobs, as well as in the government sector and mostly in low-level positions.

There are very few women working in professional work in Nepal. They may study the law, but few are able to enter the profession.  Women’s representation in the bureaucracy is also very low. Only one woman so far has served as ambassador. After 1991 not a single woman has been placed in the diplomatic corps. Limited participation in politics, bureaucracy and judiciary does not stop women from making a remarkable contribution in the decision-making process at the household level. Women serve as decision-makers in farm management, domestic expenditure (food items, clothes and other expenses), the children’s education, religious and social travel, household maintenance and also capital transactions. However, women’s decision-making roles seem to have declined in recent years.

Although some 42 percent of the Nepalese women are literate, and 60 percent of them are said to be economically active (CBS, 2003), participation of women in politics is negligible. Women excluded economically, socially and politically in Nepal. Those women who are in the frontline and may be working in high profile may be benefited, but they are very few and their voice is rarely heard.